Reid and Ayers visit Falconview owner in Western Belize

A rainy day, with a NORTH STORM FRONT stalled overhead. Hear it is freezing cold up in North America. Coldest they say since 1912? Two Belize Culture Listserve members came visiting, as they were in the vicinity. Al Ayers from Philadelphia someplace, a Belizean originally and Mr. Reid, our retired ex-Police Press Officer. We had an enjoyable chat up here in rainy Green Parrot Valley at Falconview Backpackers Adventure Hostel. It rained for two nights and a whole day straight. The Macal river is flooding again, the hydro dam upstream must be overflowing also.

TRAIL BIKES CAN BE RENTED IN TWIN TOWNS FOR 2009 TOURIST SEASON

PACZ TOURS AND RENTAL TRAIL BIKES

Western Belize is full of dirt roads. A trail bike is ideal to get around. A German guy apparently has this tourist season in 2009, put out trail bikes for tourism rental. For saving money on tours, this probably is the way to go. You want to go the long distance inland to CARACOL ruins, definitely. Or tour the Belize Alps back roads. Be sure you have a map though. I was told by BOB the retired army Englishman living here and helping to manage PACZ TOURS that two of the bigger trail bikes charge $70 usa per day and the rest of them charge $50 usa per day.

written by: Falconview Backpackers Adventure Hostel, tel: 663 5580 your HOME away from HOME and lots of adventures and expeditions.

NEW PHOTO OF FALCONVIEW BACKPACKERS ADVENTURE HOSTEL IN WESTERN BELIZE

This photo was shot in late evening of Falconview Backpackers Adventure Hostel. It didn't even show the lower main building as the building was obscured by coconut and breadfruit trees. The three story annex is vaguely seen in the background though.

DUTCH STUDENTS HAVE GREAT VISIT TO CAYO WEST

Well the Dutch University students are gone this morning. They split into two groups yesterday. Four went with Pacz Tours to the ATM ( Actun Tunichil Muknal Cave sacrifial underground site ). This is a trek with 3 water crossings and about a mile underground with head lamps. They were really appreciative of the historical feeling to the terror of the old Maya mythology of XIBALBA.

The other group of five I dropped off at the foot of the Hawksworth Bridge, where they not only sell bus tickets, but also arrange canoe rentals. Apparently they were given a choice and picked the inflatable kayaks. Each of them took one. ( $21 usa each and a ride seven miles up river to start ) They were very excited about their trip for seven miles coming down the Macal River. I've never done this trip. They told me of some waterfall on the Macal river, that they ran and it had a big deep pool of water in which they were able to stop and park their kayaks and dive off the boulders on the side. At one with nature! I saw the photos and they were great. Hope they do send me some? Living in Holland and average age of 24 years, in a small country with 16 million people and the bureaucrats running their lives. They really appreciated the "wilderness" aspects of their Macal River lower gorge paddling and swimming trip. I will have to push this trip more to guests at the Falconview Backpackers Adventure Hostel, as according to the digital photos they had, it sounded like a great time for city types. They told me they pay 55% taxes in Holland and were asking about the USA, where I estimated it was about 26%

At any rate, these Hollanders were like 6 ft 6 inches and taller. I am going to have to build the next set of beds in the new annex dormitory as we expand, to 7 feet long. I think the ones I have now are 6 ft, or 6 ft - 6 inches. I fell asleep early in the evening around 7:30 p.m., but they pooled their money and sent out for a couple of cases of Beliken beer. My wife tell me the neighbors were talking about it this morning. Apparently they went up to our third floor verandah and were singing songs as a group until midnight. Sort of like Tina's Hostel crowd on Caye Caulker. In the quiet of Green Parrot Valley and half way up the slope, they could hear them singing right up on the ridge as well.

The pickup truck is a small one, with a local folkloric casita made of wood. This is our FREE hostel SHUTTLE. We got the nine Dutch giants into it, but with their weight and that of their backpacks, I think we were trying to carry a bit over a ton of extra weight, in a pickup truck designed for a quarter ton weight. Needless to say, my back rear tires were squished to about one inch in thickness. Despite the terrible pot hole roads down into the city center bus stop in this morning, we did not blow a tire and everybody got there on time. Some of those gravel street pot holes are deep and there are a lot of them.

FLOOD VICTIMS GET GIFTS FROM THE GOVERNMENT

NATIONAL EMERGENCY MANAGING ORGANIZATION PROVIDES NEW HOUSEHOLD GOODS TO DISTRESSED FLOOD VICTIMS

For the first time in the history of Belize, household goods have been supplied to distressed victims of the October flood. In the Cayo District of Western Belize, 25 families of Calla Creek and 9 families of Bullet Tree Falls were given new household items. Houses that were submerged and the contents destroyed were the main focus. Butane cooking stoves, the butane tanks themselves, mattresses, sofa sets and refrigerators were distributed to help people get back on their feet. In the past, going back to Hurricane Hattie in 1961, zinc roofing and tools were usually the items of donation by any incumbent government of Belize, to victims of natural disasters. Household goods are a departure, as is also this huge flood that came down river from Guatemala. There have been floods before, usually longer lasting, but this time, due to the de-forestation of the jungles of the Peten and converting them to cattle ranches; there were no tree roots to hold back the torrential rain water and feed the water out slowly. The October flood of 2008, was bigger, faster and much higher than any known before down river.

While such relief was appropriate for this first ever rushing big flood, in the future, riverside homeowners should be required to build their homes fourteen feet off the ground on posts, and carry flood and hurricane insurance in future years. The taxpayers have helped out this time, but as population grows, people MUST take responsibility for themselves and their assets.

TAIWAN DONATES SUPPLIES TO FARMERS VICTIMS OF THE FLOOD

TAIWAN donates to Cayo West. Mr. Cheng Hsuing Lin, Director of the Taiwanese Technical Mission at Central Farm Agricultural research station and also on behalf of Mr. Blanco, of Animal Health OIRSA, donated to the local area representative and Cabinet Minister of Agriculture, contributions valued at $84,000 and $4,400 respectively. The form of the donations to flood farmer victims, came as vegetable seeds, corn seeds and fertilizers.